We recently had the opportunity to spend three days, enhancing our knowledge of and taking a new angle, sometimes, on the power of the mind. The fact that the course was delivered by The Mind Factor and Dr. Karl Morris with a huge emphasis on the ‘Golfing Mind’, then we knew we’d benefit and enjoy!

We first met Karl a few years ago at Bishop’s Stortford Golf Club when he was delivering a short Mindfactor Session to the members. Naturally, being a scholar of all things that go on in the mind, we wanted to learn even more and the weekend in Manchester seemed an ideal opportunity! As with everything, if you are in control of your mind, you stay calm in pressure moments, or of course in decision making opportunities, where the outcomes may have serious consequences. Now some would say there are no ‘serious consequences’ when you play golf, certainly at an amateur level, but take this a step further… how good could it be to control your mind in all aspects of your life, both in business and in your personal life?

Shenfield Station 5.11am!

Virgin Trains -London Euston

Friday morning started early, with a train into London at just after 5.00am, a seamless tube ride to Euston, and then the 6.36am Virgin Train to Manchester Piccadilly saw myself and colleague, David Tingey, a PGA Professional, arrive in Manchester just before 9.00am. Whilst we’ve flown Virgin Atlantic, it was the first time we’d used the services of Virgin for rail services, and what a joy! 2 hours 20 minutes of comfort, without having to concentrate on the roads (and potentially taking twice as long)! Next time we’re Manchester bound, it’ll be Virgin Trains all the way!

Gary Boyes, Chris Walton, Karl Morris, David Tingey

We checked into The Radisson Blu, in the centre of Manchester, where the course was to be held, and settled down for three great days of realising just how awesome the mind is, in EVERYTHING we do.

When you think back, it’s incredible to recount the number of times teams and individuals have progressed to be successful by having the belief in their ability and remaining calm under pressure. As many of you will know, it can be so easy to have many thoughts coming into your head at the same time, especially in the field of golf… head down, swing through the ball, knees flexed… Is it any wonder we have the potential to hit a poor shot? Take that a step further; Is it a surprise to anyone that we sometimes turn up for work, mind overflowing with thoughts, ideas and ‘things that we need to remember’, and then have a poor outcome? How much of that information, at that moment in time, and the ATTENTION that we devote to it, is either ‘useful’ or ‘useless’?! And that set the tone for Day one, and in fact the whole workshop… Decide what is useful, or useless… and deal with it accordingly. Something useless at one moment, could become useful at a later stage, and vice versa… but forget the before and the after, we’re talking about the NOW! Stay in the present moment, give it your full ATTENTION.

Philip Zimbardo – What ‘Time Zone’ is your mind travelling in?

Habitual time zones was an interesting concept, with our phenomenal mind being able to race, at the slightest thought to something previous in our lives or fast forward to something that we ‘imagined’ might happen. Philip Zimbardo, the American Psychologist, carried out numerous studies to demonstrate this, over a period of many years. Whenever we need to stay in the present moment, it’s about selecting the time-zone ‘Present Absorbed’!

An interesting session followed by Guest Speaker, Chris Walton, introducing the work he has carried out on the Gamma Mindset. Our brainwaves go through various stages, dependent upon what we are doing, from a state of high alert to resting and to sleep. Intriguing stuff from Chris and should you want to know more, check out www.GammaMindset.com

Gary Nicol & Gary Boyes

Day two continued with the same momentum, and a look at belief systems and possibly, more importantly, how you could change those beliefs? We had another Guest Speaker, Gary Nicol, who spent 16 years as a coach on the European Tour and is now based at Archerfield Links in North Berwick. Gary recalled many stories, working with touring Pro’s and brought his philosophy of ‘simplicity’ to everyone. Demonstrating his belief that ‘impact’ was the crucial area of a golf swing, how you got there, i.e. Back swing & follow through, was largely irrelevant, as long as the impact was sound. Of course, if someone’s back-swing affected the impact, then it will need adjusting, but to him, it was a case of ‘cause and effect’ and simply coaching that. Keeping it simple, HAS to be the best way to stay in the moment. For more information on this and the work that Gary now undertakes, go to www.tpegs.com

We particularly enjoyed the session that covered ‘perception’. The Cambridge Dictionary defines perception as ‘a belief or opinion, often held by many people and based on how things seem’, which means how we interpret information on a personal level. (I recall recently asking someone with a fear of flying what they saw when I showed them a picture of a Boeing 747. Now, I enjoy flying, and I see planes as a means of travel to a nice place! There answer? They saw a ‘metal coffin’! Based purely on how that information was received in their own head, that was their perception). Again, the work that we did about changing perception was time well-spent.

Day three looked at the four quadrants of golf, BEFORE, DURING, IN BETWEEN and AFTER and how each quadrant had an impact on the next. This again, can be directly correlated to business. Active Visualisation and creating strong neural pathways formed the bulk of the morning, with our final Guest Speaker, Dave O’Sullivan giving us some fascinating and cutting-edge insights into his work around breathing. As we know, if your breathing is controlled and calm, then so too is the mind. Dave has been involved as the head physiotherapist for Huddersfield Giants Rugby League team and has been instrumental in their recent success. For more information, www.physiohuddersfield.co.uk

Two key points for us, coming from the workshop, can be summed up in two words! ATTENTION and PROCESS. Whatever you are doing, be it personal life, sporting activity or business, you must FOCUS on and give it your full ATTENTION. With regard to PROCESS… Well if you focus on the PROCESS, and ensure your process is right… then the outcome will be as PLANNED. We’ll be looking at these two important areas in a future blog, so make sure you don’t miss out and sign up NOW.

Making new friends is always important!

As with many enjoyable workshops, you wonder how the time seems to go so fast, but as all good things come to an end, in order for the next one to start. We were back on the train to London, tired but with an abundance of knowledge and skill, not forgetting belief, that we will start to put into our golfing as well as our business lives. As with many external courses, you find yourself making great friends with people of all ages and all walks of life, that I know will be a USEFUL resource in the future. Thanks for making our three days so enjoyable and a huge thanks to Karl, Nadine and the guest speakers.

Gary Boyes & Karl Morris – Success!

Gary Boyes & Karl Morris

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With recent events in the world headlines and of course the general ‘bad news’ that the media seem to thrust down our throats 24/7, it’s very easy to fall into a negative mindset. But today, look around you and see how many ‘positive’ people you can spot?

Positive people are those folk that you feel good to be around, they have the ability to help you ‘be yourself’ in a natural relaxed state. They can turn up absolutely anywhere, and may be the person that supports you when you are feeling down and joins in the fun when you’re on the up! You may go to them for advice and appreciate their words of wisdom or as someone who looks at you and notices your strengths, when, often, you are completely blind to them. Consider how many people you know that are open-minded, kind and caring, maybe even compassionate and generous in many ways. Maybe they just have the ability to believe in you and inspire you?

I recall a story, from many moons ago, that a fish will only grow as big as its environment will allow it to. If you keep it it a small tank, it will only grow a few centimetres before becoming stunted, whereas keep it in a pond and it can grow up to a metre in length. How many times do we ‘stunt’ people by not allowing them to grow in the right environment? Spending time with positive people, due to many factors, including their belief in you and their support will enable you to grow to your maximum potential, where the boundaries are endless. Just consider how good that will feel, giving you new ideas and new possibilities. Choose very wisely who you mix with; you become like the company you keep!

Good people bring out the good in people

Who do you know that could tick the majority of the list below?

Someone who makes you feel good about yourself?

Someone you can totally be yourself with?

Someone who listens to what you have to say?

Someone you can talk to if you’re worried?

Someone who makes you laugh?

Someone who inspires you?

Someone who introduces you to new ideas or new people?

Now, you may just have one person in mind or several that tick a few of the situations. The people you have on your list could be absolutely anyone, even people that you have never yet met, but these are the people to start to model yourself on, to ‘hang onto’.

Just start, over the next few days to look around you and notice the people that are there for you. It will be no surprise that the more you mix and socialise with them, the more you will start to pick up their traits and characteristics. Again, choose wisely!

In the very near future, small workshops, based on positivity and mindful awareness, are to be run. Please come along and join us! To register your interest, simply contact us via the email address info@imduk.com and you’ll be one of the first to hear the news.

These workshops could possibly change your life, do you want to miss out?

The ROLIS instrument took a snapshot of comet 67P/CG as Europe’s Philae lander descended toward the surface on Nov. 12, 2014. Credit: ESA/Rosetta/Philae/ROLIS/DLR

So has anyone else been captivated by the recent events concerning the Rosetta Space Mission? I mean, just consider that the launch date goes as far back as March 2004, when a certain Mr Peter Andre was number one in the charts with ‘Mysterious Girl’! What was the point of the mission? To rendezvous with Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko and undertake a lengthy exploration of a comet at close quarters to watch how it is transformed by the warmth of the Sun along its elliptical orbit.

Now, when you take into account, the journey to the comet alone would take over 10 years, that the mission was ‘put into hibernation’ to conserve energy and would be ‘woken’ at an arranged date when it moved closer to the sun and was warmed by the suns rays, that the comet was 317 MILLION Miles from earth and that the comet is travelling at 34,000 mph… to land a ‘washing machine’ sized probe (Philae Probe) is truly AMAZING! Already data has been sent back, including pictures which will give mankind even more information about our solar system. A comparison has been made that it was like a fly landing on a fired bullet!

Some will say… what is the point (when you consider that the mission has cost over $1 billion, but then, you can always argue… what is the point of anything, people will always have opinions and opinions are what makes the world go round! Whether you agree with the mission or not, you cannot fail to be impressed with the vision. I mean… who would have ever dreamt up the fact of landing a probe on a speeding comet? (Well, we can all dream), yet who would have this dream/vision but actually have the commitment to see the mission through?

Too often, I, and no doubt you, hear that ‘This is impossible’ or ‘That is impossible’… and once the words have been said (even if this is in our minds, talking to ourselves) it gives us the right to give up.

If you are that determined, then this mission alone should give you all the motivation that you need to discover, whatever life may throw at you, that there is normally a way. It may not happen instantly, it may take years of planning and there will doubtless be risks and potential problems involved. Even after all the meticulous planning in the world, it is very possible that the outcome was not what was originally visioned, (as in the case of the Philae Probe, where it appears that the landing on the comet has left the probe in a crater’s shadow thus not allowing the sun to recharge the solar panels. It is currently in ‘hibernation’ and will await recharging, when and if, the probe can absorb some sun energy).

Next time you have a dream, and people tell you it’s impossible… give them the Rosetta Space Mission Story!…. Just like the Philae Probe…To be continued!

How many business opportunities are turned down on a regular basis (and life opportunities), purely because we lack the confidence to carry it out or doubt ourselves that we have sufficient knowledge or skill to undertake the task? Take the opportunity and use it as a motivator, to learn a new skill or increase your knowledge. Can you imagine how impactful that could be?

Next time an opportunity presents itself, grab it with both hands… and then go about increasing your knowledge or skill. Consider what resources you may need?

If this is something that you’d like to investigate further, then be sure to watch out for our forthcoming workshop, where the focus will be on making you a far more confident person than, perhaps, you are at the present time.

Contact us on 01277 821651 or simply email us on info@imduk.com to register your interest.

On the 6th May 1954 Roger Bannister accomplished the ‘impossible’ by running a mile in UNDER 4 minutes.

I say the ‘impossible’ because up until then, advice from medical experts was that if a human being ran at that speed then their lungs would burst, their heart explode and effectively it would result in death! Now, if you knew no better… you’d listen to the ‘experts’, right?

Well, what if those so-called experts were wrong, (as Bannister, a Medical Student at the time) believed and ultimately proved?

Beliefs are hugely powerful tools that we can use to achieve the ‘impossible’ if only you allow them to.

For more information about how YOU can enhance YOUR own belief system, and achieve greatness, CONTACT us NOW!

New Workshops are currently being developed to assist you in reaching your full potential. Drop us an email at info@imduk.com to register your interest.

Many New Year Resolutions will be made for 2014, but just how many will be acted upon, long term? How many will actually be written down, as a form of commitment? (Often, seeing goals written down can further motivate us and of course, the writing part is the ‘activity’ side of thinking).

What are your ‘goals’ for 2014?

By goals, I mean, what are your real goals? It may mean, on a personal level, giving up smoking or alcohol, maybe losing some weight? This is not what will drive you on however, the real goal will be, if you have given up smoking, alcohol or have lost weight, how you will feel in yourself, how will you view yourself?

On training workshops and courses throughout this last year I often ask people ‘What will make you happy’? Well, it’s no surprise, that for many of them, they say ‘winning the lottery’ or ‘being rich’! That is not a ‘goal’ though, what would that money or new-found wealth actually do for them, that surely is the ultimate goal? When they then start to think about that aspect, the goals become a lot clearer. So ensure any goals you make have a clear outcome.

Remember, if you don’t know where you are going, how will you know you have got there?

At the turn of the year, we often reflect over the previous twelve months and sometimes with regret? Next time you sit down and think back, think of the highlights only… and watch what happens to your state of mind!

Highlights of 2013 for me? Well too many to name, but here’s a shortlist… what one is top of my 2013 list? Maybe I’ll let you know next time!

Meeting ‘strangers’ on training courses throughout the year, many of whom have now become ‘great friends’! Thank you.

Spending a week with 40 Year 6 Leavers on the Isle of Wight, huge fun watching them grow as people. Thank you.

Registering 5 ‘consecutive’ Birdies on the golf course, a feat that someone researched and said the odds were over 46,000/1 🙂 I guess those lessons do pay off?

On the golfing theme, scoring a hole-in-one. Is it all luck? 😉

Seeing my daughter’s face on her 17th birthday when she opened her present… the ‘car key’ with the car waiting outside and then passing her Theory Test at the first attempt.

Watching my son’s football team gain promotion with him being top-goalscorer on 41 goals!

Tearing around London with McMullen’s Bar Person of the Year nominee’s. Good times, Thank you.

Meeting a great friend I lost touch with years ago. Thank you.

Working with some fantabulous people which makes my job seem nothing like a job is meant to be (or what we are told)! Thank you each and every one of you.

Be happy in 2014, Be healthy in 2014 and if you have that, you will have abundant wealth.

Now if you are serious about goal-setting or simply having a great year and would like a helping hand, then stay tuned to the IMD UK Facebook page or our blog www.imduk.org where we will announce forthcoming workshops that can directly improve your life next year.

Please share this with people you think will benefit, they can then make their own choice as to whether 2014 will be a great year.

Feeling stressed-out after Christmas? I’ll also bet you were even more stressed out before Christmas!

How many people do you know, perhaps on occasions, even yourself, who tell you they suffer from stress? They are really stressed, everything is getting on top of them and that they have suffered for ages. They feel under pressure, sometimes to unimaginable levels.

STRESS DOESN’T ACTUALLY EXIST!

Now if I went on to say ‘stress’ doesn’t actually exist, these would be the first people to disagree with me. What I mean by that statement is that you cannot actually ‘catch’ stress, there aren’t ‘stress virus particles’ flying around the air, in the same way that you can inhale or contract other, airborne diseases, such as Influenza or Avian Flu.

Stress can be described, effectively, as a reaction to a situation or perhaps a response to a circumstance. Many of you will have heard of ‘white coat syndrome’ where someone, for example, who attends a GP surgery to have their blood pressure taken, suddenly has high blood pressure, due to the situation they find themselves in. Many of you will have been to the dentist for that filling, long overdue, and as you are watching the clock for your appointment time in the waiting room, anxiety and tension rises, and you start to feel out of control. The levels in each and everyone of us can differ enormously, yet think about this… all of these are reactions in your mind, nothing has actually happened as yet!

Even if you are the ‘coolest cucumber’ in the world, imagine yourself, alone in a wood and as you turn a corner, the biggest, fiercest Grizzly Bear confronts you, standing on it’s hind legs, teeth bared and growling. How do you feel? Get the picture?

Stress is the way the mind responds to a situation or circumstance, and with the mind being such a phenomenal tool, has the ability to work for you… but sadly, on occasions, it can work against you as well, (too often, if you allow it to).

FANCY SOME TIME TRAVEL?

Like a scene out of Doctor Who, the mind has the ability to undertake time-travel, on a daily basis. Think, if you will, for a moment about what you did yesterday morning. Now think about what you may be doing tomorrow morning and you’ll soon get the idea that the mind is continually tracking backwards and forwards, normally, with the help of the thinking, process driven left brain, analysing what has happened and perhaps, what ‘might’ happen. You may hear yourself saying, ‘Why did I do that’? ‘If I hadn’t done that’? ‘Why does it always happen to me’? You’ll know many people that are continually saying this to themselves, without actually doing anything about it! As an opposite, you also jump forward in time, planning your day and week ahead, perhaps arranging your holiday itinerary, even a shopping trip, etc. and again, you’ll know people who, before it has even happened, will be imagining how bad the week ahead will be! (For those, it probably will be, but more of that later).

When we start to overthink, either the past or what we perceive to be the future, then that can undoubtedly increase our stress levels, yet there is only one moment that we can control and that is the here and now. The past has gone, analyse it as much as you wish, but it won’t change. Of course, learn from it and use it as a learning point which can shape what you do for the rest of your life, but it will never actually change. Similarly, you can influence what happens tomorrow, but you cannot 100% control what will happen. Life may throw us a curved ball, outside/external influences can start to shape what will happen in the future. The only moment we can control is now.

BECOME LESS STRESSED RIGHT NOW

So how do you even begin to become less-stressed? Well one of the proven methods, and something that each and everyone of us can do, is breathing. Controlled breathing together with the correct focus has been proven to lower stress, anxiety and blood pressure. So why do people get caught on the merry-go-round of their life and suffer due to unacceptable stress levels. (I say unacceptable, because a manageable amount of stress is a good thing, it drives us on, motivates us, etc, but again, that’s something I’ll discuss on another day). Focussing on the moment and controlled breathing is often referred to as meditation and you can meditate whenever you choose to, it really is up to you.

You may know people, whose anxiety and stress levels are, quite frankly, unacceptable. It affects not only their day to day work and social lives, it can have long-lasting effects on their general health, lowering the immune system and leaving them susceptible to all manner of illnesses. Yet, for most, it really doesn’t have to be that way. For a few sufferers, it seems incredible that instead of moving away from the source of their stress, they are actually drawn towards it. The whole situation or circumstance that has caused the stress and illness, becomes a ‘safety net’ to them. It may seem bizarre, but again, you may know people like this, constantly stating that ‘One day, they will do this, or one day they will do that…. yet it never actually happens… What they effectively do is wallow in exactly the thing that is causing them stress, like a constant downward spiral, merely increasing stress levels. Again, you will know people that do eventually (and hopefully) get themselves out of whatever situation they are in that is causing their stress and anxiety… and one of their first responses is ‘I don’t know why I didn’t do this earlier’. The fact is many people know what they need to do, but do not have that courage, determination or conviction to change; sometimes they just need a helping hand.

Current research shows us that meditation can have a huge impact on our positivity, in turn increasing our health and wellbeing. Some people insist they do not have enough time in their lives to meditate, and perhaps they are right! Maybe they are just too busy fighting the stress to actually try something different that could help them. Just five to ten minutes meditating each day can start to have a huge impact on your own life. Surely you are worth that investment?

WHAT TO DO NEXT

If this really does intrigue you and you’d like to know a little more about how you can reduce your stress levels and embark on the journey of meditation, then contact us on the details below. Dates are currently being sourced for workshops, to help you, right now.